The word from the rumbling innards of Steam is that a Zeno Clash demo is now available. The demo contains a slice of the single player campaign, and the first level of the challenge mode, so you’ll be able to sample both. Then, should you fancy, you can compare and contrast your impressions with our verdict.

I’ve been meaning to get this game ever since the first trailer was shown, be since I don’t have an american credit/debit card, I was never able to purchase it on that 50% weekend sale, and what a shame that was.

Still about two weeks since then, and I haven’t gotten ahold of it, but what a better way than to get the demo!

Krondonian, I’ve tried paying with Paypal, but it won’t accept the payment. I live in the US, but have no internet over there; every once in a while, though, I go back to my parents’ house in Mexico, and there’s internet there, but Steam rejects the transaction because the addresses don’t match.

Zeno Clash was great, if a little short. But in a world where games with a 6-hour length are charged full price, that really doesn’t mean anything. Incredible design, good combat system, interesting universe….that’s all there is to say. :-)

The “edge of the world” level was amazing. Must be something about the Source engine that makes thing come to life on an emtional level. And I just spent an hour trying to beat the final level of the tower challenges, balancing between frustration and triumph. Zeno clash = awesome.

I’m not feeling all of the love for Zeno Clash, by which I mean as much as other people do. I bought it pre-demo, I love the design, dialogue and characterisation but the gameplay is a bit meh to me. I’ll play it through just to see the sights but I really do feel like I’m a tourist. Kudos to the developers for getting FPS fisticuffs spot on like Riddick though.
Would love to see a different style of game in this world although for some bizarre reason my brain is thinking of something in the line of the first bunch of Abe games.

My favorite bit was when I loaded up the demo, then alt-tabbed out and found that it was refusing to release my video hardware, leaving my screen blinking for several long minutes. I had to restart the box.

Gosh! Wow! Great game.

Edit: I kicked a chicken. I feel better. Still messing with my video hardware though. What is up with the 8×00 series? So many games have problems with them.

I’m siding more towards the “meh” crowd on this game. Mostly for the gameplay (so far a mix of cut scene, arena battle in small map, loading screen). Admittedly I’m not very far in the game (I don’t think).

Visually the game looks nice, but my jaw has yet to drop, nor my mind blown (though I guess that’s a hard thing to do to an ex acid head).

This game is for people that grew up thinking Streets of Rage and Final Fight were fucking awesome. Because it’s basically those games, from first person, with awesome art. And I don’t really see how that stuff is more repetitive than the average hordes you mow down in a normal FPS anyways…

Gravatar Wedge says:
“This game is for people that grew up thinking Streets of Rage and Final Fight were fucking awesome. Because it’s basically those games, from first person, with awesome art. And I don’t really see how that stuff is more repetitive than the average hordes you mow down in a normal FPS anyways…”

I didn’t like ZC either, but will happily mow down cookie cutter goons in a FPS until the cows come home. It’s not a crime to dislike Zeno Clash, it’s just another point of view. I didn’t “get” the game and thought the controls were spongy. No amount of telling me I’m wrong is going to change that POV. I paid seven quid for it so I don’t really care but I think the demo would have been enough to put me off.

What I’d actually love to see would have been a bog standard shooter in that crazy setting. And lose the cut scenes every five minutes. I effing hate cut scenes and have done for about the last decade. Note to developers – you are not all budding Orson Welles.

It’s probably not, I tend to be pretty picky about my FPS’s and lean towards those that require some tactical thought. I was never a big fan of beat ‘em ups, and you’re 100% right that that’s what this is from a first person perspective. I can certainly understand how a fan of those games would love this, it’s certainly very well done taken in that light. It’s just not my genre, I suppose, and that’s fine.